Maybank's B. Namasivayam (left) takes control of ball posession from TNB's Azril Misron during their Malaysia Hockey Premier League at the National Hockey Stadium in Bukit Jalil last month. - Filepic
KUALA LUMPUR: Going by recent form, Tenaga Nasional and Universiti Kuala Lumpur (UniKL) should get past their playoff rivals and check into the semi-finals of the Malaysia Hockey League (MHL) for the TNB Cup.
Tenaga will be up against Sapura while UniKL will meet Maybank in the two-leg playoff ties. The winners will advance to the semi-finals next week against Terengganu and Kuala Lumpur Hockey Club (KLHC).
Tenaga, who finished third in the Premier Division, do have a slight edge over Sapura, thanks to them having several experienced players who have played at this level before.
Sapura, also former champions like Tenaga, will be hoping that their players can recover from their recent indifferent form they displayed in the preliminary round.
Sapura, coached by Tai Beng Hai, have the potential to surprise the big teams, though the recent run of poor results is a worrying factor.
But Beng Hai believes that the knockout stage, with its home and away format, offered Sapura a chance to salvage their season.
“It is over two matches ... we need to stratergise accordingly. I believe that my team will rise to the occasion.
“We have played Tenaga many times and we know what they are capable of,” he said.
Tenaga coach Nor Saiful Zaini agreed with Beng Hai’s assessment, saying that the knockout format will not favour any team.
“This is all about the teams’ form on match day. You have just two matches to get it right.
“In the league, you had 10 matches to get the points. We must make sure that the first match goes our way ... or ends up as close as possible,” said Nor Saiful.
“Only then is there a good chance for us to get the job done in the second game.”
The other playoff will see UniKL having the upper hand against a Maybank team still searching for their first win of the season.
Of the 10 matches they played in the Premier Division, Maybank drew five and lost five.
But Maybank coach Wallace Tan is optimistic also.
“We will take each game seriously. I’ll make sure the players give their best. It is always touch-and-go in the knockout stages, so we’ll fancy our chances as well,” he said.
UniKL have had their sights trained on the playoffs since they lost sight of the Premier Division title.
“We are playing better and there’s improvement overall in the team. But we cannot take Maybank for granted,” said UniKL coach A. Arulselvaraj.
“They may not have won any matches thus far but they are still a strong team.
“I want to focus on how my players fare and try to ensure that they are mentally ready for the game.”
Limited time offer:
Just RM5 per month.
